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2017-2018 WorkINdiana Grant

Competitive Application (Request for Application)

Statement of Purpose

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD) is committed to providing outstanding adult education and training services that help Hoosiers acquire the knowledges, skills, and abilities that are required for employment in high demand industries on career pathwaysthat lead to sustainable wages.

To support this commitment DWD Adult Education has set the goal to provide four thousand five hundred (4,500) short-term credentials needed to work in jobs that require more than a high school education, but less than an associate’s degree, each year. DWD expects that the majority of these credentials will be earned through utilization of WorkINdiana.

DWD is soliciting applications/proposals from Workforce Development Boards (WDBs) and current Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title II Adult Education Providers (AEPs) for WorkINdiana funds for the 2017 program year (PY17)[1]. DWD desires to fund WorkINdiana providers requesting a minimum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) that can provide WorkINdiana services specified in this request for application (RFA).

Grant Period

DWD will award single year WorkINdiana grants on a competitive bases for PY17 (July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018).

Right to Recompete

The State of Indiana and DWD reserves the right, at any time, to cancel this request for application prior to the awarding of funds and to recompete the WorkINdiana PY17 funds.

Eligible Applicants

To be eligible to receive funds as a result of this RFA, an organization must be:

  1. A WDBOR
  2. An Indiana AEP that has been awarded funds through the 2017-2018 Adult Basic Education (ABE) or the 2017-2018 Integrated English Literacy & Civics (IELCE) RFAs.

Applicant Grant History

Organizations that have received grant awards in previous grant competitions are not guaranteed funding as a result of this grant competition. Applicants not funded as a result of previous grant competitions will not be precluded from applying during this grant competition, unless the organization fails to meet the criteria of an eligible applicant, nor will applicants not chosen for funding during this grant competition be barred from applying for funding in any future grant competitions.

WorkINdiana

WorkINdianaprovides the first step on a career pathway for eligible individuals by giving Hoosiers access to occupational skills training with a minimum of forty (40) hours of instruction over a maximum of fourteen (14) weeks ending in an industry-recognized credential that can lead to work, or career advancement, in an in-demand job.

WorkINdiana training programs are intentionally short-term to allow students to finish quickly, gain an industry-recognized entry level certification, gain or retain employment, and/or pursue advanced education or employment.

Eligible Individuals

Individuals who wish to participate in WorkINdiana must meet the following requirements to be considered a WorkINdiana eligible individual:

  1. Have completed the Indiana Career Explorer (ICE) assessment; AND
  2. Have a student record in the InTERS data system; AND
  3. Have a valid TABE score; AND
  4. Be currently enrolled in an Indiana Adult Education Program[2]; AND
  5. Have a student record in the InTERS data system; OR
  6. Have a high school diploma or high school equivalency; AND
  7. Have been enrolled[3] during the current, or previous, program year in an Indiana Adult Education Program; AND
  8. Have a student record in the InTERS data system; OR
  9. Have successfully completed the Jobs for America’s Graduates program (JAG); AND
  10. Be in the one-year JAG follow-up period.

Scope of Work

WorkINdiana grantees will be responsible for providing and/or contracting to providethe following services:

  1. Embedded student services, such as, but not limited to:
  2. Case management;
  3. Career counseling, coaching, and mentoring;
  4. Enrollment into WorkINdiana occupational skills training; and
  5. Student supportive services.
  6. Employment services such as, but not limited to:
  7. Building relationships with local employers that can provide WorkINdiana students:
  8. Job shadowing, internships, and/or paid or unpaid work experience; and
  9. Commitments to interview and hire WorkINdiana completers.
  10. Follow-up services, such as, but not limited to:
  11. Job placement and
  12. Workforce preparation.
  13. The issuance of WorkINdiana training funds to eligible training providers.

WorkINdiana Training Funds

WorkINdiana funds shall be issued to cover the costs of approved WorkINdiana training programs for WorkINdiana participants using the following criteria:

  1. WorkINdiana training funds will be used as a per customer reimbursement; AND
  2. WorkINdiana training funds shall pay for one (1) certification exam per customer; and
  3. WorkINdiana training funds shall pay for one WorkINdiana training program per customer over his/her lifetime.
  4. WorkINdiana training funds shall be paid in two phases:
  5. Seventy percent (70%) of the cost of the program shall be paid if the WorkINdiana participant is present on the first day of training; AND
  6. Thirty percent (30%) will be paid after the approved training provider provides documentation that a WorkINdiana participant has completed the training program and is prepared to sit for an industry-recognized certification exam.

In order for a provider to be eligible to receive WorkINdiana training funds the program must:

  1. Provide training that has been WorkINdiana approved;
  2. Appear as WorkINdiana eligible on Indiana’s eligible training provider list; and
  3. Accept WorkINdiana’s two-phased funding scheme.

Grant Funds

DWD plans to distribute funds to WDBs and AEPs across the state that request at least fifty thousand dollars ($50,000). While there is no maximum requested dollar amount associated with this RFA, eligible applicants should keep in mind DWD’s goal of awarding Hoosiers four thousand five hundred (4,500) credentials to fill in-demand jobs that require more than a high school diploma (HSD) or high school equivalency (HSE), but less than an associate’s degree.

To assist potential applicants in determining the potential demand for WorkINdiana training, DWD is including the table below. This table shows the projected number of jobs in Indiana by field that require a credential offered through the WorkINdiana program.

Eligible Expenditures

WorkINdiana grant funds must be utilized according to the formula:

  • No more than ten percent (10%) of WorkINdiana grant funds shall be spent on administrative costs; and
  • At least ninety percent (90%) of WorkINdiana grant funds shall be spent:
  • As WorkINdiana training funds; AND/OR
  • On WorkINdiana participant supportive services.

Performance Metrics

DWD will monitor WorkINdiana grantees’ WorkINdiana enrollments and performance. DWD reserves the right to reallocate funds during the grant period if the performance of a provider is determined to be

unacceptable. WorkINdiana grantees will be expected to meet the following performance requirements:

  1. Eighty percent (80%) WorkINdiana participant completion rate;
  2. Seventy four percent (74%) certification rate for WorkINdiana completers; and
  3. Sixty percent WorkINdiana completer employment rate.

Proposal Review and Timeline

All applications submitted for this RFA will be evaluated based on the criteria listed below. Submitting an incomplete application or submitting an application that is later than the stated application deadline will be grounds for non-consideration.

The following types of attachments to the RFA application will NOT be evaluated:

  1. Not solicited as part of the RFA application; OR
  2. DWD determines to be an attempt to circumvent application length requirements.

Timeline

Event / Date
Issuance of RFA / June 16, 2017
Proposal/Application Due Date / July 17, 2017 10:00 AM EST (GMT – 5)
Proposal/Application Evaluation / July 18-27, 2017
Notification of Awards / August 1, 2017
Grant Activation / July 1(retroactive), 2017

DWD Contact Information

Question & Application Submission

DWD WorkINdiana Manager / Nathan Storm

Application

All applications submitted to DWD in response to this RFA must:

  1. Use 11or 12pt. font;
  2. Be single spaced;
  3. Be submitted electronically to [4]; AND
  4. Be complete[5];
  5. Part I: Program Information/Cover Sheet & Application Narrative;
  6. These should be combined in a single document (.doc or .pdf);
  7. Part II: Itemized Budget Attachment (WorkINdiana Detailed Budget.xls);
  8. Part III: Partnerships Attachment;
  9. Annotated list of current partners saved in the following format Program; name_WI_partnerships (.xls, .doc, or .pdf); and
  10. Be no more than ten (10) pages in length, excluding requested attachments.

Completed applications (including attachments) must be:

  1. Submitted electronically [6]; AND
  2. Submitted on or before July17, 2017, by 10:00AM EST (GMT – 5)[7].

Evaluation Criteria

Each proposal will be scored by the WorkINdiana grants scoring team using a one hundred (100) point scale utilizing the following rubric:

Category / Point Value
Cover Sheet & Program Introduction / 0*
Narrative Response / 60
Itemized Budget Attachment / 20
Partnership Attachment / 20
Total Possible Points / 100
*Failure to submit coversheet or program introduction will be grounds for non-consideration

Cover Sheet

The application cover sheet should be included at the beginning of the document which contains both the program introduction and the grant narrative. The cover sheet must include the following information:

Grant Funds Requested
Proposed Number of Participants To Be Served
Projected Cost Per Participant
Certification Training Programs To Be Offered
Proposed Eligible WorkINdiana Providers To Be Used
Applicant Organization / Region(s)
Address
Agency Telephone Number
Grant Contact
Grant Contact Telephone
Grant Contact Email
Fiscal Agent (If Different)
Fiscal Agent Address
Fiscal Agent Telephone Number
Signing Agent*
Signing Agent Email
*Signing agent is the person who signs for a fiscal agent

Program Introduction

Applicant should include an introduction to, and description of, the applying organization, not to exceed more than one half (1/2) of a page.

Narrative

The narrative questions are divided into three categories each worth twenty (20) points. The category point totals equal sixty (60) points. The applicant must complete all questions (listed numerically) and all sub-questions (listed as bullets under the questions)found in each category. Answers should be as thorough as possible while keeping the overall application under the ten (10) page length maximum.

  1. Student Services (20 points)
  1. Explain how your organization plans to provide:
  2. Case management for WorkINdiana participants; INCLUDING
  3. Career counseling, career coaching, and mentoring (10 points); and
  4. Describe your organization’s plan to enroll WorkINdiana participants in WorkINdiana training.
  1. Employment Services (20 points)
  1. Explain how your organization currently provides, or plans to partner to provide, WorkINdiana participants:
  2. Job shadowing, internships, and/or paid or unpaid work experience; and
  3. Commitments from employer partners to interview and hire WorkINdiana completers (10 points).
  4. Explain how your organization currently provides, or plans to provide, follow-up services; INCLUDING
  5. Job placement and
  6. Workforce preparation (10 points).
  1. Issuance of WorkINdiana Funds To Eligible Training Providers (20 points)
  1. Describe your organization’s plan to manage the issuance of WorkINdiana funds to WorkINdiana eligible training providers. Explain:
  2. Whether or not your organization is an eligible WorkINdiana provider; AND IF SO
  3. The types of WorkINdiana approved certifications your organization offers; AND
  4. Your organization’s plan to issue funds to WorkINdiana eligible providers other than your organization (20 points).

Budget Attachment

Complete and submit the budget attachment document (WorkINdiana Detailed Budget.xls). The budget attachment is twenty (20) points and will be scored based on a number of factors including, but not limited to:

  1. The amount of funds allocated to each line item;
  2. Alignment with DWD priorities; and
  3. Overall cost per WorkINdiana participant.

Partnership Attachment

Attach an annotated[8] list of partners your organization intends to utilizeto provide services to WorkINdiana participants. This section is twenty (20) points.

Application Procedure

All documents requested for this RFA should be submitted in a single zipped folder to the following email address: no later than 10:00 AM EST (GMT – 5), July 17, 2017. The folder should be named using the following format: programname_WIRFA.

[1] The PY17 grant period starts on July 1, 2017 and ends on June 30, 2018.

[2] 12 hours or more recorded attendance in an Adult Education Program.

[3]Ibid.

[4] Applications/proposals must be submitted to . Failure to submit grant applications to the correct email inbox will be grounds for non-consideration.

[5] All narrative questions that apply to the applicant must be answered. Failure to provide answers to the narrative portion of the application will be grounds for non-consideration. Failure to submit all completed attachments will be grounds for non-consideration. Any attachment submitted, but not solicited; or DWD determines is an attempt to circumvent application length requirements, will not be evaluated.

[6] Applications/proposals must be submitted to . Failure to submit grant applications to the correct email inbox will be grounds for non-consideration.

[7] Failure to submit all completed application documents by this time will be grounds for non-consideration.

[8] See a description, and examples of, the annotation process.